The present invention relates to a method of fabricating ball-striking implements, and more particularly, to a bat which has a desired weight and balance and is formed of a laminated structure.
Ball-striking implements such as baseball and softball bats, cricket bats, billiard cues and golf clubs have commonly been made of wood, although in recent years other materials such as aluminum, steel and plastic have been substituted because of scarcity of appropriate types of woods, cost and strength, as well as other factors. Experience has shown, particularly with such striking implements as baseball bats, that not only are particular types of woods more desirable, but that the manner in which a tree has grown affects its desirability for use in making a bat. Northern White Ash trees, for example, have been especially suited for making bats, particularly those trees with large growth rings which grew during years of good balance between moisture and nutrients in the forests. However, continued cutting of the Northern White Ash tree has depleted the availability of suitable lumber to make high quality baseball bats.
Additionally, it is advantageous to be able to adjust the weight and center of gravity or "balance" of the bat to be more suited to a particular player's use. In the past, attempts to achieve this in wooden bats have not met with general acceptance and have proved to be unsatisfactory for a variety of reasons.